


Not Tomorrow

by starrylitme



Series: Until we may fall in love [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ambiguous Relationships, Attraction, Budding Love, Canon Rewrite, Complicated Relationships, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Insecurity, M/M, Mental Instability, Slow Build, Unhappy Ending, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Unhealthy Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2016-11-23
Packaged: 2018-09-01 15:40:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8629660
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starrylitme/pseuds/starrylitme
Summary: They both admired Hope’s Peak. Komaeda just happened to be the one lucky enough to attend the main course.Hinata doesn’t resent him for being lucky. He envies him, of course, but he doesn’t resent him. He's just...tired.(DR3 AU where Komaeda had known Hinata prior to the Kamukura Project, among other minor changes. It doesn't go terribly, but it doesn't go all that well either considering the inevitable circumstances.)





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [NanakiBH](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NanakiBH/gifts).



> This was written for the KomaHina Exchange, and since it got posted there, it's going to be posted here, too! Now with the appropriate formatting that tumblr so rudely removed! YAAAAAY!!
> 
> So, uh, I kind of went crazy with this prompt and ended up expanding it into its own verse. I might even want to expand it even more with a Nanami-based story?? But for now, it's a three-parter with this as the first part. The other two don't get this long, thank god.
> 
> I have a lot of concerns when it came to writing the dr3 KomaHina I wanted that CANON WAS NEVER GOING TO GIVE ME, but I'm pretty content with this. It could have been even bigger, but the relationship is meant to be the focus so I think this is fine. I hope you enjoy it too.
> 
> You, like me, can pretend this is what actually happened in zhen if you want. :'D

“Hey, can you hear me...?”

It was bright overhead, blue and white blurring together before everything came into focus. And gray-green eyes narrowed, a frown deepening.

“Isn’t it uncomfortable to sleep like that? And isn’t it too bright outside to rest so easily? And,” With a lowering tone, the words growing harsher and colder in direct contrast to the open, warm air all around, “Isn’t it quite _impertinent_ to sprawl yourself on a bench where others may wish to sit?”

Hinata quickly pushed himself up, startled and meek, “I-I’m sorry!”

And yet, the elite student’s aloof demeanor didn’t lighten up even a little. He just gestured with his chin for Hinata to move with nothing short of an unimpressed expression. Hinata obeyed, scooting to the end, and keeping his stare politely averted as the other sat down.

Despite himself, he still found his gaze wandering back to him, taking in the uniform, and swallowing.

“Staring at someone so intensely is creepy, you know,” the other states coolly, popping open a can of soda as he does. “Do you just not have any tact?”

“Ah, sorry,” Hinata apologizes again, quicker with his head lower. “I just... You’re from the main course, right?”

“Ooh, such observational skills as expected from a talentless, unimportant reserve course student.”

Hinata winced at the biting sarcasm, but couldn’t help but get irritated. “I was _just_ —!”

“I’m Komaeda Nagito of Class 77-B of the main course.” Komaeda doesn’t miss a beat in cutting him off, and the words are almost rapid-fire enough to hurt. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“I... Hinata Hajime...” Hinata’s glare narrowed, his hands clenching tightly into fists. “Class 1-A of the reserve course. May I ask what you’re doing so far from the main campus, _Komaeda-san_?”

“Is that your business, _Hinata-kun_?” Komaeda asks, lightly but giving him another look. “I was strolling—I’m allowed to do that.”

“So far from the main campus?” Hinata repeats, disbelieving. “It’s not like this is the only fountain with surrounding benches in Hope’s Peak.”

“It has one of the nicer views,” Komaeda says, huffing.

“Oh.” _I wouldn’t know anything about that._ “Whatever you say.”

Komaeda took a drink. Hinata just rolls his eyes and lets it be.

Leaning back against the bench, his eyes are soon enough once again on the main building, looming over the trees and stark against a vibrantly blue sky.

* * *

It took him a shamefully long time to really notice, but once he did, he wondered if this was the thought he’d be stuck with tormenting him for the remainder of the week and sporadically ever after.

_How does a guy just carry around that much soda?_

Komaeda had seven unopened cans off to the side. He was barely through his second soda. That was nine cans. Nine. Who carried that much soda around? Who would have that much if not _more_ soda just—in his bag?

 _Surely that doesn’t have to do with his talent, right?_ Hinata wondered, not quite sure if he should dismiss the possibility. _What would such a talent be? SHSL Soda Drinker?_

He couldn’t help but muffle a laugh.

_Maybe I **should’ve** drank more soda as a kid—maybe that was my problem. _ **I see** _, it all makes sense now._

He would have burst out laughing if he hadn’t caught the strange look Komaeda was giving him. He almost did but, any humor died down in embarrassment as his face flushed and Komaeda just quirked an eyebrow.

“Are you having a sudden aneurysm, Hinata-kun?”

If not for the words, Hinata wouldn’t have known if he was supposed to take that question seriously or not.

“No, I just... It’s nothing.” Shaking his head, shrinking in on himself, he mumbled, “D-Don’t mind me.”

If there was anything he’d expect from Komaeda at this point, it sure as hell wouldn’t be the unopened soda can being offered to him in response to that.

“You should probably drink something anyway,” Komaeda says. “It’s quite hot out.”

“Eh, not really?” The words slipped out and what Hinata would have _gave_ to stuffed them back down his throat as he shook his head furiously and stammered out, “I-I mean! Uh, thanks...?”

He reaches out and takes the soda can. It’s actually a little lukewarm—but the pale fingers his own had unintentionally brushed against were cold. Hinata just doesn’t think about that, instead focusing on opening said can—and ending up with a face full of soda for his trouble.

“Ah, oops,” Komaeda gasps, lightly but with what Hinata was sure was an undercurrent of amusement. “Looks like you got an unlucky pick—my apologies, Hinata-kun.”

At least he had a handkerchief for Hinata to wipe his face off, even if he snatched it with an irritated grumble. He grit out, insincerely, “Don’t _worry_ about it.”

“It really was an accident,” Komaeda mumbles, almost meekly.

Hinata cleans himself off, irritated with the stickiness of the soda, but irritation with Komaeda swiftly and unfortunately fading fast as he just sighs. “Alright. It’s fine. It happens. I’m not exactly a lucky guy.”

“Ah, Hinata-kun’s unlucky then.” Was there something Komaeda was implying? Really, Hinata didn’t care to look too much into it but... The light smile playing on Komaeda’s lips, something about that gave Hinata pause. “I’ll want that handkerchief back by the way.”

“I’ll wash it first,” Hinata replied, almost instinctively as he gave it a good look. Interestingly, there was a four-leaf clover embroidered in the corner. Surprisingly cute, but not too far-fetched to believe it belonged to a guy like Komaeda.

“I’ll hold you to that, Hinata-kun,” Komaeda said matter-of-factly, and stood up, taking the rest of the soda and, even more surprisingly somehow, handed them over to Hinata one by one. “As an added apology, you can have the rest of these.”

“Huh? Wait, seriously?”

“I have more than enough of them, you see, from luckily winning so many a while back,” Komaeda explains, with a bright cheer that had Hinata’s eyes widening. “I don’t mind sharing that luck with you—drinking so many carbohydrates probably isn’t safe for me anyway.”

“I mean... Thanks?” Hinata felt even more confused in spite of said explanation. “Wait, what do you mean _won_...?”

“It’s the duty of the reserve course to support the talented, isn’t it?” Komaeda asks, so sharply and suddenly with that same, serene smile that Hinata immediately freezes up, any and all words he could’ve used dying on the spot. “So think of it also as you alleviating a burden of mine, Hinata-kun.”

_Well, when you put it that way..._

Hinata didn’t say anything in response.

Komaeda didn’t seem to mind, waving at him cheerfully before heading on his way, calling out, “I’ll see you later, Hinata-kun.”

_Well._

Hinata just shrugs with a sigh, and downs the rest of his can.

_Free soda’s free soda._

* * *

It’s not like he hadn’t seen one of the elites before. His classmate, Satou, was really good friends with one of them. The SHSL Photographer, he thinks. He’d seen the two of them from a distance sometimes, laughing, chattering, and having lunch together. If not for their uniforms, black against warm brown, it’d be an utterly normal sight.

Satou’s friend had a bright demeanor and a kind smile, and she seemed friendly enough all-around, not that Hinata ever talked to her, or even really Satou for that matter. He wasn’t exactly friends with Satou—or anyone else in his class. He didn’t really talk to anyone, either, and his classmates weren’t ones for small talk in the first place.

The reserve course was a stifling place. He envied Satou for being able to laugh so easily around an elite when everyone else was expected to keep their heads down. But he didn’t resent her for that when some of his other classmates did. It just wasn’t his place. Satou was just lucky, he supposed.

_Lucky._

Hinata found himself, once again, staring at the handkerchief he cleaned, at the four-leaf clover on its corner. It could just be a coincidence but—

He had known his luck wasn’t anything to write home about. He had known that the chance of winning the HPA lottery was beyond stacked against his favor. _But._ But, despite everything, he _had **hoped** —_

Coincidence itself was based in _luck_ , wasn’t it?

It’s not like this was any of his business. It’s not like it changed anything. It didn’t _matter_ one way or the other.

_...But._

* * *

“Komaeda-san, here.”

Komaeda was already at his bench, looking towards the direction of the main building, and Hinata stifled any thoughts he had about finding that odd. Komaeda, at least, did respond to him, turning towards him and taking the handkerchief with a grateful smile.

“Thank you, Hinata-kun.” Observing the pure white fabric with a hum, he added, “You removed all traces of stains! How nice!”

“It’s nothing,” Hinata mutters, recalling how thorough he had to be in scrubbing so that’d be the case. Trying to push back the thought, his eyes wandered inevitably back to that clover. “By the way...”

_It doesn’t matter. This isn’t my concern. It **doesn’t** —_

“Are you by any chance the guy who won the lottery?”

Komaeda perks up, just as Hinata freezes up.

_Why even the **hell** would you bother asking?! It’s not like it changes anything whether he is or isn’t!_

“Ah, yes,” Komaeda says, almost casually. “I’m Class 77’s SHSL Lucky. Was that just a lucky guess, Hinata-kun?”

“I...guessed from your handkerchief, Komaeda-san. Most people just have a generic flower or their name.” _And the way you mentioned luck was a clue too, come to think of it._

“Oh, right,” Komaeda muses distantly, glancing towards the clover before laughing, lightly and good-naturedly, “I guess it is a little apparent. So,” Meeting Hinata’s gaze, with sharp and expectant eyes over a soft, calm smile, “What about it, Hinata-kun?”

“It’s nothing,” Hinata mumbles. “I just...wondered that impulsively. It doesn’t change anything.”

“Doesn’t it?” Komaeda asks, with a tilt of his head, owlishly blinking up at him with the handkerchief hiding his mouth. “You mean you’re not at least a little indignant?”

Hinata grits his teeth, but he forces out. “It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t change anything.”

“Hinata-kun,” Komaeda says, and maybe, just maybe, those gray-greens start to swirl. “Do you really mean that? Is that really how you _feel_? If you had just been _luckier_ you could have been in _my_ place at the main course. Doesn’t the thought _irritate_ you?”

Just like that, Hinata’s shoulders slump, his head hanging low. Like rather than bursting, that winded up bundle of nerves just unraveled into nothing, and he just sighs.

“What does it matter if it does? Do you just want to gloat?” Gesturing the other blankly to go on, letting his hand fall to his side, Hinata just mutters, “Go ahead. Chances are, I’ve probably heard it all before in my own head but, whatever. Whatever makes you happy, I guess.”

Komaeda pulls down his handkerchief, frowning deeply. “You’re especially dull for a reserve course student, Hinata-kun.”

“You’re not the only person to think that way,” Hinata replied, dully. “I guess I was just especially _made_ for the dull reserve course or something. No _wonder_ that’s where I ended up.”

He almost wanted to laugh. There wouldn’t have been even a semblance of humor in the sound if he had.

“Hinata-kun,” Komaeda says. “Why don’t you sit down?”

_...Huh. That’s a request._

Hinata does, and he tries not to be too self-conscious of Komaeda’s curious, piercing stare.

“Can I ask you something, Hinata-kun?”

“Uh,” Hinata hesitates, but nods. “Sure...?”

“What do you think about luck?”

“Huh? What’s there _to_ think?” Hinata asks, exasperated. “Luck’s just...luck, right?”

“Well, I mean,” Komaeda says, clarifying. “What do you think about luck as a _talent_?”

_As a talent, huh...?_

“I...don’t really know. But isn’t the point of the lottery to study whether or not luck can be called a talent?” At Komaeda’s nod, Hinata goes on. “I mean, it’s not like luck doesn’t _exist_. Everyone can be either lucky or unlucky a lot of the time—but when it comes to determining if someone’s luckiness is inherently stronger, better, or whatever... It’s a real mystery. I guess it’s no wonder HPA wants to look into that.”

“Not a lot of the higher-ups at HPA are invested in the idea, though,” Komaeda sighs. “Really it’s Headmaster Kirigiri who pushes for the lottery every year, but... Even though I had my doubts myself, I do want to see where this all takes me, even if I feel utterly undeserving every step of the way.”

“...Undeserving?” Hinata repeats.

“Undeserving,” Komaeda repeats. “Because I don’t think luck’s really a talent, and if it is—it’s a pretty lousy one to have. It’s finicky, uncontrollable, and beyond fickle. At best, I can pick up on patterns—but I never completely know what to expect.”

“I...” _I don’t really know if I fully understand, but..._ “I guess that makes sense...?”

“Does it?” Komaeda raises an eyebrow. And just as Hinata flinches back with a swallow, Komaeda just shakes his head with another sigh. “In studying luck, the staff here are wasting resources and allowing for added liabilities. It’s honestly quite worrying. For what it’s worth, Hinata-kun, your presence here is probably more warranted than mine.”

 _...Huh?_ “What?”

“At least reserve course students pay hefty fees to get in—it’s because of the reserve course that the school has grown to such an incredible size.” Looking ahead towards the main building, Komaeda adds, almost quietly, “I was a little wary of the idea at first, but it really is for the best, I think.”

“That’s... Well, that’s one way of looking at it...” Hinata hesitates, thinking it over. “But I guess you aren’t wrong?”

“Your support really is much appreciated, Hinata-kun!” Komaeda chirps, flashing him a bright, cheerful smile. “You’re just a normal person and yet you make such a difference! I really envy you, Hinata-kun!”

**_...Seriously?_ **

“You envy _me_ , huh? Seriously?” Hinata really tried to smile in return, but he just couldn’t. Even his huffed out laugh, bitter and mirthless, is done with a scowl. “The reserve course isn’t a _charity_ , Komaeda. We didn’t come here just to support the school. People generally aren’t that generous with the amount of money it takes to pay those _hefty fees_.”

“There are other benefits, of course,” Komaeda says simply. “Even if you’re untalented, brand name recognition is bound to reap some advantages in this world.”

“Regardless,” Hinata snaps. “Whatever you think about luck being a talent, the school’s serious about studying it all the same. You’re still in the main course. Some reserves would give _anything_ to be in your place.”

Komaeda hums, drearily at first before casting him another curious, doe-eyed glance. “Would that include you, Hinata-kun?”

“It might.” He says it almost without hesitancy. Then, he just sighs, running his fingers through his hair, and avoiding the other’s stare. “But it doesn’t matter. It can’t be helped. You won the lottery fair and square and there’s no real point in resenting you over that. Still, getting to be in the main course, and walking among the elites—you really are one _lucky_ guy.”

“Aren’t I?!” Komaeda exclaimed suddenly, almost sparklingly. It’d be an understatement to say it was a startling change, especially as Komaeda rambled on, all starry-eyed with hand clasped tightly to the point of making his handkerchief bleed creases. “I really am! To be able to observe the elites from so closely really is like a dream come true! Just being in their presence, I can bask in their hope and it’s just— _so_ wonderful!”

Hinata just blinked, taken aback, and trying to regain himself. “B...Bask in their hope?”

_That’s...an interesting way to put it..._

And yet, Komaeda nods excitedly as though it was obvious.

“It really _is_ beautiful,” He positively gushes with a lack of shame that could’ve been impressive. “Everyone’s talents... Everyone’s light... Everyone’s hope... It’s almost _blindingly_ brilliant...”

_The way you’re talking is pretty blinding, honestly._

“Sounds...nice.” Stupidly, he almost felt bad for not being able to come up with a better word. “I... They’re probably impressive to observe. Or...something.”

“Ah, but my classmates don’t like it when I’m too close. Or if I’m staring. Or if I’m, actually, anywhere near them, in some cases,” Komaeda laughs like it’s nothing, rubbing at the nape of his neck sheepishly. “Some of them really keep either to themselves or to their own circles.”

“I... Oh.” None of that sounded surprising. Hinata was still reeling from that sudden personality change, but—“You really admire them though, don’t you? Do you read up on the forums too?”

“Do _you_?” Komaeda asked, eyes wide. Hinata flinched.

“Eh... Uh... S-Sometimes...” He admits, even as he quickly explains, “I’m not an active user but I check the HPA website often enough, I think...”

“I see,” Komaeda says, with a thoughtful expression Hinata couldn’t help but find a little bit flustering. Especially with Komaeda’s next question, “Hinata-kun, would you say you admired Hope’s Peak? Is that why you joined the reserve course?”

Hinata didn’t even hesitate. “Yeah, I’d say that’s why. I’ve looked up to this place all my life. Being here...had _always_ been a dream of mine.”

_...But, I..._

“Interesting,” Komaeda muses, cutting that thought off short. Hinata perks up as he just giggles in open amusement, “We’re very similar, Hinata-kun!”

“I...guess...” Hinata shrugs. “But, Komaeda, you’re still—I mean, Komaeda- _san_...”

“You slipped up before; it’s best to not keep pretending,” Komaeda says simply, with a knowing smile. “You’re really not one for manners, are you, Hinata-kun? But I don’t mind, not at all.”

Hinata swallows, staying silent.

“Oh, would you look at how much time has passed!” Komaeda looks past Hinata at the sun lowering towards the horizon. “I should probably get going. I’ll see you tomorrow, Hinata-kun?”

“Y-Yeah,” Hinata agrees on impulse, returning Komaeda’s cheerful way with a polite one of his own. It wasn’t until he watched Komaeda’s thin form disappear over the hill that he repeated to himself, unsure and disbelieving, “ _Tomorrow_?”

* * *

Sure enough, the next day, as he was scribbling down notes on that same bench, he heard Komaeda’s greeting.

“Hinata-kun! How studious!”

“Komaeda,” he returns, glancing up at him, a little flustered but swallowing back any remarks on that comment. “So, when you said tomorrow yesterday...”

“I meant tomorrow! Though it’s today now, isn’t it?” Komaeda was grinning cheekily, and he seats himself on the other side of the bench. “Surely you understand, right, Hinata-kun?”

“Sure...” He really didn’t and just returned to his work which only made marginally more sense. Komaeda hummed, but he didn’t say anything else as Hinata worked.

At first.

“Hinata-kun, Hinata-kun.”

Hinata kept staring at the letters and numbers printed on the text, blinking hard to refocus when they started blurring together. The efforts, while admirable, had to be repeated a few times.

“Hinata-kun.”

But at some point this would have to soak into his brain, right? Is that how it normally worked? For a second, he really wondered about all that.

_Everything starts with believing in yourself—do not fear normalcy—but, do you really want to be like this? Is that really what’s best?_

“Hinata-kun!”

 _You_ could _be more. You_ could _be better. You_ **could** _make everything more and better than before. You could be—_

“Ah, the reserve course student is _ignoring_ me,” Komaeda sighs exaggeratedly and heavily. “How disrespectful! I should have known!”

“Komaeda,” Hinata sighs too, much more calmly even as irritation twitches in every fiber of his being as his glare snaps to evenly meet Komaeda’s narrowed stare. Said glare harshened at the way Komaeda was very obviously _~~(adorably)~~_ pouting, with puffed out cheeks and a puffed out lower lip. “What do you want?”

“You’ve got _this_ ,” Komaeda’s index finger presses into Hinata’s handwriting, uncaring of smudging, “Wrong. And this, and this, and that. Goodness, Hinata-kun, the slipups in math are understandable but your English is _terrible_.”

“L-Leave me alone!” Hinata snatched his notebook away, flustered beyond belief. “I—that one’s just _hard_! It’s perfectly understandable for a guy to struggle with it!”

“You misspelled ‘good-bye’, Hinata-kun.” Then, Komaeda seemed to consider something else. “Your handwriting is better than mine though, for what it’s worth.”

“Gee, thanks,” Hinata replied dully. Looking down at his work, he did, with annoyance, notice where he made the mistake Komaeda pointed out in his formulas. But the English still remained a whole lot of _blah_.

“Your grammar’s decent, at least,” Komaeda went on, peering over his shoulder as he did. “So many pencil-marks... You should be tidier, Hinata-kun.”

“That’s because I make a lot of mistakes as you’ve noticed,” Hinata griped.

“This sentence you’re translating...” Komaeda points said sentence out, and Hinata immediately stiffens as the other asks, “Is this _poetry_?”

“T... That’s...”

“Did _you_ come up with this?” Komaeda asks, as Hinata wished he could just die or at least disappear when Komaeda couldn’t resist muffling a giggle, “Wow, Hinata-kun, that’s _dorky_.”

Hinata slammed his notebook and textbook shut.

“Ah, Hinata-kun.”

Hinata stood up, turning on his heel and speed-walking away as he explained, quickly and as firmly as he could manage, “I just remembered I forgot something, so I’m, just gonna go. Later.”

“See you tomorrow, Hinata-kun!” Komaeda called out, ever so cheerfully behind him, even though Hinata would have been perfectly happy with not seeing him tomorrow—or, in fact, the day after tomorrow, and the day after that.

But with Komaeda waving, with that bright smile on his face as Hinata glanced over his shoulder, Hinata knew he really, really didn’t stand a chance.

Especially not with someone titled _SHSL Luck_.

* * *

Of course, they did meet up the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that. Soon enough, their meetings were regular and near daily. Not always, because Komaeda mentioned needing checkups at HPA’s Healthcare Facility every now and then.

“I’m a little frail, as I’m sure you noticed,” Komaeda said cheerfully, and Hinata had so he just nodded silently.

Komaeda didn’t explain much else when it came to his health, and Hinata didn’t ask any questions—except the occasional “are you sure you’re alright” when Komaeda looked a little too tired, a little too pale, or when he wheezed a little too painfully. Komaeda brushed off each and every concern with the same calming, carefree smile Hinata found he had difficulty arguing with.

Sometimes, the two of them would talk, of course. About the impressiveness of Hope’s Peak, and Komaeda would gush about his classmates from the regality of the SHSL Princess to the delicacies made by the SHSL Chef... Though he mentioned having to be careful when it came to the latter because...

“It turns out he added something extra to the dumplings he offered the others—I think I almost died, Hinata-kun. Not that he was trying to kill me! Hanamura-kun felt really, really bad afterwards and was even crying about how he didn’t want to be a murderer...”

“Wait. So he _drugged_ your food?”

“It was a joke. It was an ironically _tasteless_ joke, but one that nonetheless didn’t agree with my pills. Still, I really hope he’d avoid adding such ingredients to his meals in the future, regardless of the recipient.”

...reasons.

“Your classmates sound...eccentric.”

“You think so?” Komaeda just laughs. “But they’re really something else! Sometimes, Nidai-kun and Owari-san can shatter the very walls with their prowess! Just watching them, I get goosebumps! It’s so... exhilarating!”

“Huh...” _I would’ve used the word terrifying._

Komaeda would talk about other SHSLs, too. One name in particular stood out.

“Matsuda-kun, the SHSL Neurologist in Class 77-A, is someone I’m granted the privilege to talk to a lot! He’s really rough around the edges, but he really is brilliant...!”

_A neurologist, huh? And he’s around our age. Would someone like him be involved in the project...?_

“I even heard he’s working on a project with the former SHSL Therapist, Gekkogahara-sensei—I see her quite a bit, too—and I’m _sure_ they’ll accomplish so many wonderful things...”

“Huh...” Honestly, he’d believe it too. “You...really are lucky, Komaeda.”

“Aren’t I?!” Komaeda exclaims, looking beyond radiant in his delight. With a smile like that—Hinata felt his chest clench, even as it soon faded with Komaeda sighing, “Sometimes it’s so overwhelming and I end up overheating... Matsuda-kun gets really irritated when I do. Something about it getting so ridiculous that my brain might literally melt?”

Hinata can’t help but laugh at that. Komaeda laughs too.

Unfortunately, that light, blithe mood doesn’t last for long as Hinata’s thoughts catch up to him.

“Komaeda...” He starts, hesitating only a bit as Komaeda turns attentively his way, still with that bright, brilliant smile. “Are you really just happy being around other elites? I mean, you mention it being overwhelming... But I can’t help but think it must be nerve-wracking, too.”

“Ah, a little,” Komaeda does admit, twirling a wayward strand of his curly white hair. “But compared to people like them, my luck really is nothing. It’s only truly unfortunate that there’s not much I can do to support them as I am...”

“Support them, huh...” Hinata remembered Komaeda having said something similar to that earlier. But wasn’t the context different? Komaeda certainly hadn’t looked as wistful then as he did now.

“How to explain it... Ideally speaking, if the hope of the SHSLs is the most brilliant of lights... Then someone like me, as well as the reserve course, is only part of the surrounding darkness, right?”

Hinata felt a shiver go up his spine. But whether in response to that troubled expression or something else entirely, it really wasn’t clear, Komaeda immediately added, “That’s not a bad thing, you know. Stars are only able to shine when bathed in darkness after all. The duty of darkness, I think, is not to stifle or suppress, but to make light all the more beautiful.”

_To make it all the more beautiful, huh..._

It...was something else to consider, at least.

_It’s only in darkness where light can exist, right?_

“Mm...” Komaeda shut his eyes tightly, almost uneasily, before looking towards him worriedly. “Hinata-kun, what I said made sense, right?”

“Yeah,” Hinata says, nodding, smiling as he did. “It did.”

“I’m glad!” Komaeda chirped, really, truly looking relieved. “You _agree_ , don’t you, Hinata-kun?”

Hinata’s smile fell.

“Hinata-kun?” Komaeda asks, so brightly, so _expectantly_ , that it felt stifling.

“Y...Yeah...” Hinata quickly nodded, forcing out the rest, and painfully smiling as he did, “I guess I do.”

Komaeda giggles, pleased with the answer, and despite everything, Hinata knew he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t the slightest bit happy at being the recipient of such an expression, even with an edge of bitterness staining the feeling. Bitterness and something that felt a lot like resentment.

But he didn’t resent Komaeda himself or anything like that.

It’s not like he was wrong.

* * *

No, Komaeda wasn’t wrong at all.

But the truth was still difficult to take.

And...there were other things, too. Other complications, Hinata realized, and didn’t know how to deal with at all.

* * *

“Is there something you want to do?” Komaeda asks him on one particularly dull day.

“Huh?”

“I don’t mind relaxing and enjoying silence, but you look quite bored, Hinata-kun. Which is rude. As a reserve course student, you should be at least a little more appreciative of my presence.”

“Uh, sorry...”

“I’m kidding!” It was something else how quickly Komaeda could switch between lighthearted and stern. “But it was a serious question. Hinata-kun, do you want to go somewhere else or...?”

“Somewhere like what?” Hinata asks almost dumbly, because it’s not like reserve course students were allowed anywhere on the main campus. So there weren’t a lot of places he could think about going to. He doubted Komaeda wanted to explore the reserve area.

“We can walk around, check out the nearby outlet mall, or maybe...” Komaeda seemed to think hard on it. “An arcade, perhaps? Does any of that sound fun?”

“An arcade?” Hinata repeats, and then considers, “Yeah, that sounds fine. So you like video games, Komaeda?”

“Not particularly. I’m more into books than anything else.” For what it’s worth, Komaeda’s matter-of-fact smile is apologetic. “But I can’t invite you to the library, Hinata-kun.”

“No, you can’t,” Hinata agrees, quietly and in a low tone of voice before forcing at least some semblance of cheer, “But the arcade sounds fun. I’m uh, not too good at video games though... I think I can do alright on Pacman and Galaga, but that’s about it.”

“Ehehe, I’m not exactly good either, so I don’t mind.” Komaeda’s sheepish smile at admitting this was...something, Hinata couldn’t help but think. He’d need time to figure out what—but part of him doesn’t really want to. Especially with how Komaeda brightened back up soon afterwards, asking, “So shall we go? I’d lead the way but—I might get lost, you know.”

“That’s fine,” Hinata says.

“I’ll rely on you then, Hinata-kun,” Komaeda replies. It’s almost as if this is something Hinata should be grateful for.

Hinata’s smile twitches, but he nods, and repeats, “That’s fine.”

* * *

They maybe should have changed out of their uniforms, considering people tend to stare. Especially at Hinata’s—at the pure black suit that wouldn’t look out of place at a funeral. At least people would only do a double-take around Komaeda when noting the badge. Hinata could only shrink under those piercing stares and feebly loosen his tie as the two stepped inside.

He focused on Komaeda at first, following him almost like a lost puppy, keeping close like an anxious toddler. He only narrowly avoided running straight into the other’s thin back when Komaeda suddenly stopped.

“Oh! Nanami-san!”

Hinata stumbles a bit, looking up with confusion as Komaeda made his way through the crowd, waving cheerily as he did, continually calling that name.

A girl in a cat-eared hoodie perked up, her hood slipping off her head as she turned away from a flashing arcade screen to Komaeda. She meets his smile with an unreadably dull expression, her lips parted into an ‘oh’ after a pause.

“Komaeda-kun,” she says, greeting with a simple nod. “Good afternoon.”

“Greetings, Nanami-san!” Komaeda chirped with his usual overflowing enthusiasm. It almost seemed like compensation for Nanami’s underwhelming lack of it. “I should’ve known to expect you here, but this is a lucky encounter nonetheless!”

Nanami nods again, however absent-mindedly the nod seems to be this time. Except as Hinata’s carefully approaching, he freezes up when that dark pink gaze slid over in his direction. Nanami didn’t say anything—not even a greeting or even a question—and Hinata couldn’t help but shrink back at the following drag of awkward silence that felt like forever.

“Hinata-kun,” Komaeda clicks his tongue at him sternly. “Is that _any_ way to greet someone?”

“I...!” Hinata choked, and quickly bowed deeply. “P-Pleased to meet you...!”

“He’s not usually like this,” Komaeda tells Nanami as she just acknowledged Hinata with a noncommittal hum.

“Pleased to meet you, Hinata-kun,” Nanami drones, either failing at attempted gusto in her greeting or being sarcastic, Hinata couldn’t tell. “I’m Nanami Chiaki, Class 77-B, SHSL Gamer.”

“I’ve mentioned Nanami-san before, right?” Komaeda asks, beaming. “She may seem a little spacey, but she’s quite the reliable person! She can be really focused and perceptive when the time calls for it!”

And yet, at that point in time, Nanami blinked blearily at them like she was only half-attuned to her surroundings. Even while she seemed to focus on Hinata, it felt as though she was only barely registering his presence. It was more than a little nerve-whacking, and...

_It’s stupid to get intimidated at a time like this..._

It was especially stupid considering Nanami was just a stocky girl who was like, a head shorter than him. What was there to be intimidated by?

_She’s one of the elites too._

Oh, right.

“Uh,” Hinata says, swallowing and attempting a smile. “So you’re one of Komaeda’s classmates, huh Nanami—san? _Nanami-san_?”

“You shouldn’t force the _san_ if it’s uncomfortable, Hinata-kun,” Nanami said simply and matter-of-factly. Hinata, smile twitching, corrected himself.

“Nanami, then.”

“Do you not know how to talk to people, Hinata-kun?” Komaeda asks him, voice only barely a whisper. “Or is it just because Nanami-san’s a girl?”

“Shush!” Hinata hissed. “Would you rather I’d acted all casual like we’re equals?!”

“Ah, no,” Komaeda shakes his head. “That’s a good point, Hinata-kun.”

Somehow, that didn’t make him feel better.

“Hmm...” Nanami twirls a strand of her short pink hair. “Komaeda-kun, Hinata-kun, you two came here to play video games, right?”

“Uh, yes?” Hinata answers almost instinctively. “That’s typically why you _go_ to arcades, right?”

It only took him a second to flinch, realizing how rude that sounded. But while Komaeda frowned at him, Nanami just nodded, completely unaffected.

“Yup. That’s typically why... I think.” She went on, almost curiously, “Did you have a particular game in mind....? They introduced some new games a while back. Like this new shooter. Hinata-kun, do you like shooters?”

“You mean like one of those games where you get attacked by alien bugs or zombies?” Hinata asked. “Uh, sorry, no, I’m kind of too squeamish for that.”

“You are?” Komaeda asked, wide-eyed. “Hinata-kun, it’s not like the gore’s _realistic_ in those games!”

“I’m still squeamish, Komaeda!” Hinata shot back.

“It happens,” Nanami says. “Some people just have a really low tolerance for that kind of thing regardless of how cartoony it looks.”

Hinata appreciated that, but somehow it didn’t make him feel that much better about himself.

“He likes the classics, I think,” Komaeda chirps.

“That’s a good place to start,” Nanami replies. “They definitely have those—and pinball if you’re into that.”

“I...I’m not actually good at pinball,” Hinata said, rubbing at the back of his head with a nervous laugh as he did. “The ball almost always gets knocked into the drain after I start the game.”

Both Komaeda and Nanami stared at him, expressions unreadable.

“Uh...” Hinata shrinks in on himself, pulling at his shirt collar. “So... Yeah...?”

“That’s just _despairing_ , Hinata-kun,” Komaeda murmurs blankly as Nanami just blinks a few times like she’s trying to make sense of it.

“Mm, I guess some people are just that hopeless...” she finally agrees, humming. “It can’t be helped... Probably...”

“Ugh,” Hinata groans and then, with a shake of his head, just tugs Komaeda away by his sleeve. “Come on, Komaeda, we’ll just stick to Galaga or something. Sorry for bothering you, Nanami.”

“Hinata-kun, you can at least be a little more explorative!”

“ _Hush_ , Komaeda!”

“It’s fine,” Nanami says, watching the two bicker with something tugging at the corner of her lips. “I don’t mind, I think. But, if you change your mind, I’ll be here.”

“Thank you,” the two responded easily, though Hinata went right back to bristling as Komaeda stuck his lower lip out at him and made a face.

* * *

While neither of them got very far into any of the games they did try out, Hinata would say the two of them had fun for at least a while.

However, Hinata was not surprised that they both returned to Nanami not too long after. They watched her power through some food-based fighting game that seemed to delight Komaeda each time a character spouted off a punny catchphrase.

In an even shorter while, Nanami had Komaeda face her in versus mode. Komaeda scrolled through each character thoughtfully—and then just selected random, and Hinata couldn’t say he was surprised by that turn of events, either.

But he was surprised by how immediately Komaeda went from laughing about how there was no way he’d have a prayer against the SHSL Gamer—to furiously pressing buttons and unleashing combo after combo. If Nanami didn’t expertly dodge, block, and counter, it would’ve been a one-sided match.

“Komaeda, you’re uh, good at this game?” he couldn’t help but ask. “You’re really holding her off really well.”

“I have no idea what I’m doing, Hinata-kun,” Komaeda cheerfully responds without missing a beat. “I’m just pressing things randomly and hoping for the best! I guess you can say I’m just getting really lucky, but...”

Nanami stopped his character dead in their tracks with combo after combo of her own. Komaeda’s laugh rose in fervor at the sight, still furiously pressing buttons in vain. “What’s beginner’s luck against the _seasoned_ elite, hmm?”

It wasn’t too long before Nanami ultimately won the match. Komaeda was quick to wipe his palms off thoroughly before she shook his hand good-naturedly.

“You really are incredible, Nanami-san,” he sighs happily, to which she just shrugs.

“Your luck is...something else, Komaeda-kun.”

“Is it really just luck?” Hinata asks, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s really just luck,” Komaeda replies to him. “What else would it be? I absolutely had no idea what I was doing after all.”

“Komaeda-kun did get a little unlucky because his character was really slow,” Nanami added. “Usually, Komaeda-kun gets a speedy character, but this time...”

Komaeda giggled as Hinata just stared and let it all sink in.

_Was it really just luck?_

There was a growl, and Hinata instantly flushed even as Komaeda flinched.

“Ah, oh,” Komaeda’s laugh is a little shakier and sheepish. “I’m quite hungry. I’ll get everyone snacks.”

Plucking up his school bag to dig through for his wallet, he waved the two off.

“Hinata-kun, you should face Nanami-san, too,” Komaeda chirps before Hinata opened his mouth to protest. Glowingly, he added almost joyously, “Even if you lose horribly, playing with an elite gamer is really exciting!”

“I...” Hinata stares after him as he scampered off, voice trailing. “I guess...”

With a sigh and turning to Nanami, who hurriedly resumed the game and clicked back to the character selection screen, Hinata took his place at the player two controller. He stared at each character, and right when he considered selecting random like Komaeda had, Nanami spoke up.

“Kimchi’s good to play as if you’re a complete newbie, Hinata-kun.”

“Ah, got’cha.”

Hinata selected whoever that was without thinking twice.

* * *

He was starting to get the feeling that just randomly pounding his hand against the buttons as he shook the joystick back and forth wasn’t working nearly as well for him as it had for Komaeda. His character was getting pummeled and it didn’t even look like Nanami was using any combos.

“Up, up, right, right, down, left, jump...” Nanami seemed to be muttering to herself, utterly fixated on the screen as Hinata’s grimace deepened more and more. “Right, right, left, left, down, down... Hinata-kun, try, that.”

“Huh?” Hinata perked up, pausing in playing. Thankfully, Nanami didn’t seize the opportunity.

“Right, right, left, left, down, down,” she repeated, dully and monotonously. “That’s one of Kimchi’s best combos.”

“Oh...” He followed the motions and sure enough had the character performing an impressive fire attack. “Uh, thanks. Sorry I’m not...good at this.”

“It’s fine, I think,” Nanami mumbles. “This game doesn’t have an accessible list of combos for all the characters, so it’s...a little unfriendly towards new players, probably. But I have all the combos for all the characters memorized, so...”

“Isn’t there like, twenty characters?” Hinata asked, to which she corrected, almost seamlessly.

“Twenty-three. Each one has four to ten combos.”

“A-And you have _all_ those memorized?!”

“Yeah.” For once, she didn’t even miss a beat.

 _Wow. Talk about overkill._ Hinata almost laughs, even as his forced smile twitches. _Guess that’s just part of being the SHSL Gamer..._

And then, Nanami proceeds to kill his character. And as before, the machine’s uncomfortably loud when cheerfully calling her the winner.

“Good game,” Nanami said, pressing through the screen.

“Urgh, it’s fine to be honest, y’know...” Hinata groans, wiping his hands off his slacks. “I’m almost 96% others you’ve played did better than that. Hell, Komaeda did _really_ well.”

“For a newbie, Hinata-kun did well,” Nanami says simply. “And Komaeda-kun just got very lucky with his controls. Most people have to really train to use as many combos as seamlessly consecutively as he did just pressing buttons randomly. So it’s not fair to compare yourself to him, I think.”

“I guess,” he mutters. _Though she’s right. If that match was any indication, Komaeda’s luck really **is** something else. It’s no wonder luck like that got him into Hope’s Peak..._

“Come to think of it, I wanted to talk you about Komaeda-kun.” Nanami slid another coin into the machine’s slot. Despite what she said, she still seemed utterly focused on the game.

“About Komaeda, huh?” Hinata asks, just to make sure he heard that right.

“Yup.” Nanami presses start. She selects a single-player campaign. “You’re his friend, right, Hinata-kun?”

“Friend?” Hinata repeated, almost huffing out the word. “That’s a pretty generous word for it.”

“Comrade, then?” she offers.

“That’s...definitely a bit much. I think we’re just acquaintances.”

“Oh,” Nanami said. She selects her character, and Hinata can’t help but wonder if that was disappointment in her tone he just heard. All the same, she goes on, “But you get along with him pretty okay, I think.”

“I guess,” Hinata replied, rubbing at the nape of his neck. And he recalls, “Komaeda said he doesn’t get along with the rest of his class... But he seems pretty friendly with you, Nanami.”

“Komaeda-kun’s friendly with everyone, but he’s not really friends with anyone. At least, he refuses the label.” A pause. The first match starts and almost immediately the foe is pummeled with a series of expertly maneuvered combos. Hinata watches in awe, and swallows.

_As expected of the SHSL Gamer._

“Though,” Nanami goes on, words slowing even as her controls didn’t. “No one...would really call Komaeda-kun a friend, either. He keeps to himself a lot.”

That wasn’t surprising at all, considering Komaeda’s attitude towards other elites. Still, Hinata chews on the inside of his cheek as he struggled to come up with a response.

Not that Nanami waited for one as she kept on talking as she wailed on her opponent.

“No one really...approaches Komaeda-kun either. And Komaeda-kun doesn’t approach anyone unless he’s acting as a messenger. Komaeda-kun is...” She stops at seeing the flashing victory screen. She seems to take a moment to press on through, but once she does, she resumes talking as she wracks up combo after combo. “Komaeda-kun is... I don’t think he’s a bad person, but he’s strange. Some of our classmates just don’t know what to say to him other than, um, small talk.”

_You’re not exactly normal either, Nanami._

“Aren’t all elite students kind of strange people?” Hinata asks instead.

_But, then again, compared to Komaeda..._

“Komaeda-kun keeps everyone at a distance too, I think,” Nanami just kept on babbling almost like she hadn’t heard him at all. “But—with Hinata-kun, it was _different_ than how it is with everyone else. He seemed a lot more at ease or something like that. So, I guess I just wanted to say that I...”

Another flashing victory screen.

“I was relieved.”

Nanami pulls back for just a moment to rub her hands together. It was then that Hinata noticed her calluses and irregularly cut nails. Considering Nanami, the sight shouldn’t have been a surprise, but _still_.

Hinata flinched back as she turned to look at him, and for once that blank stare seemed almost intense before she just gave a surprising, gentle smile.

“You seem like a really good influence on him, Hinata-kun. So I’m really, really relieved.”

 _Really? What exactly do you **think** our relationship is?_ Even as the thoughts piled up, Hinata found he bring himself to verbalize even a word. _I already said we weren’t friends._

“That’s all,” Nanami said, returning to her game. She resumes beating her opponent without so much as a blink. “Sorry, I’m not very good at giving speeches. But that’s the gist of what I wanted to say, I think.”

“That’s, uh, fine,” Hinata replies, shoulders slumping. “But, _look_ , Nanami...”

“I’m back, Nanami-san! Hinata-kun! I’m so sorry for the wait!”

“Komaeda-kun,” Nanami says without turning her head as Hinata practically spun on his heel. Komaeda’s smile was as wide and bright as ever—even in the low lights of the arcade, surrounded by flashing lights, Komaeda looked bright.

“The line was just so _unbearably_ long!” Komaeda went on with a laugh where there should’ve been a gripe. “And a couple people took just so despairingly _long_ deciding what to get that I wanted to **_scream_**! My feet were starting to hurt and I think my legs were cramping up. _But_!” He held up the bag, brightening even more in spite of everything. “I managed to get something for everyone. Nanami-san, you prefer things with a strawberry flavor, right?”

“Yeah...” Nanami pauses her game and he hands her a package of cookies. She opened the bag with a pop before plopping it onto the arcade controls. “Thank you, Komaeda-kun.”

“It’s nothing,” Komaeda chirps before turning to Hinata, at least looking a little apologetic. “Ah, Hinata-kun, I forgot to ask you what you wanted.”

“I forgot to tell you what I wanted,” Hinata answered, earning Komaeda to just laugh. Swallowing, Hinata went on, “I’m sure whatever you got me is fine, Komaeda.”

“Mm, I think this would suit Hinata-kun, so...” Komaeda gave him a packet. And Hinata took it, thanking him—except he paused when he saw what Komaeda got.

“Roasted chestnuts...” Hinata’s lips pull into an unimpressed straight line. “I see.”

“They’re peeled!” Komaeda added, as though that was a significant bonus. “That way, you skip a lot of the usual tedious steps in eating them. Still I think the snack suits you, Hinata-kun.”

“Thanks,” Hinata grumbles, perking up as he realized, “Uh, I should pay you back...”

“Oh no, that’s unnecessary,” Komaeda says, waving his hand. “It’s not like I struggle financially or anything like that.”

“I...” Hinata hesitates before straining himself to smile. “I see... Thanks either way, Komaeda. I really appreciate it.”

Komaeda cheerfully nods back. Then, almost immediately, he notes Nanami’s progress. “You’re on the final fight already, Nanami-san? How impressive! As expected of the SHSL Gamer! Yaminabe’s the hardest character to clear the campaign for, right?”

“Mm,” Nanami agrees almost mindlessly. “They typically move really slowly and all of their combos are tricky... But I...really like playing as them.”

“They’re kind of a wild card, right?” Komaeda’s giggling as Hinata silently watches the two of them converse from behind. “If I remember what you told me—sometimes Yaminabe’s stats change.”

“Fitting of their name, huh,” Nanami mutters, and then with one hand tosses a cookie into her mouth from the open bag on the control pad. “They’re quite the mysterious character, too. Lots of people theorize on Yaminabe’s origins...”

“Personally I like the one Nanami-san mentioned about them being a reaper.”

“Komaeda-kun...you have a good memory...”

“Ahaha, I wouldn’t say that...”

Hinata tore open the bag, popping one of the chestnuts into his mouth.

He couldn’t say for sure whether or not he cared for the salty flavor.

* * *

“See you in class tomorrow, Nanami-san!”

“Bye-bye,” Nanami mumbled back, rubbing at her eye as she waved the two of them off. “Hinata-kun, best regards.”

As she was heading in the opposite direction between the two of them, Hinata couldn’t help but notice she was pulling out a handheld gamer device. She didn’t even wait a second before flicking it on and playing it as her figure disappeared into the distance.

“Nanami-san really is impressive, isn’t she?” Komaeda asks. “That said, she’s completely out of your league, Hinata-kun.”

“I’m not interested in that!” Hinata shot back, flustered. “I don’t even have the _time_ for that! Exams are rough enough!”

“Oh, exams,” Komaeda muses as the two of them started walking. “The students in the reserve course take a lot of exams, huh? Almost as much as my old school, I think.”

“I’m not sure why they bother,” Hinata muttered in annoyance. “The price to get in is already pretty high... But maybe they just don’t want you thinking just money is enough to get by if you’re an untalented in HPA.”

“Maybe, but it’s still pretty stressful,” Komaeda says. Hinata just nods to that, and he goes on. “Hinata-kun, you’re a hard worker, aren’t you? You don’t even have time for dates?”

“No, not at all.” Hinata shook his head firmly. “I barely have time for friends.”

Komaeda hums thoughtfully, and there’s almost a glimmer in his eye as he smirks. “But you have time for me, Hinata-kun.”

Hinata’s face went red and he quickly snapped, “Don’t say it like that.”

“ _Hmm_?” Komaeda practically sing-songs, “Then how should I _woooord_ it?”

“Definitely _not_ like that.”

Komaeda giggled. “Sorry, Hinata-kun. You’re fun to tease.”

“I’m glad my embarrassment is so entertaining,” Hinata said, grumbling. “Why would you even say something like that in the first place? It’s not like we’re friends or anything.”

“Ah, no,” Komaeda’s almost quiet as he says it. “No, we’re not...friends or anything like that.”

 _...Urgh._ Hinata couldn’t help but grimace. _And why does he have to say that in a way that bothers me?!_

“Did Nanami-san say something weird to you about me, Hinata-kun?”

“Huh?” The suddenness of the question had him flinching, and he gave the other a look. “Did you overhear our conversation earlier? And what do you mean by weird?”

“That expression suggests you already have a good idea of what I mean—but never mind, Hinata-kun,” Komaeda’s voice dropped into a mumble. “It doesn’t really matter either way...”

“You didn’t answer my first question,” Hinata pointed out.

“Troublesome, aren’t you?” Komaeda asked. “If that really concerns you—well, I suppose I’ll answer directly: no, I didn’t. But, you two did seem to be having a moment...”

“It _really_ wasn’t anything like that,” Hinata stated, albeit with an exasperated flush. “She was talking to me about you, so...”

“Oh?” Komaeda wondered, making him start stammering.

“I-I mean! She wasn’t saying anything bad! She was just saying...!”

“Nanami-san’s not the kind of person to badmouth someone behind their back, so I’m not concerned about that.” The words were quick and firm, cutting him off. Just as Hinata opened his mouth to say something else, Komaeda added, “Hinata-kun, I’m really unconcerned about that, so, you really don’t have to explain anything.”

“I... Right...” Hinata dropped his stare to the ground as he went back to facing forward as the two of them walked. He didn’t say anything else.

And Komaeda didn’t say anything either.

The silent walk back before the two of them ultimately separated was really, really kind of awkward.

But for what it was worth, at the end before being on his way, Komaeda still told him, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Hinata-kun.”

* * *

It’s not like he isn’t aware of how their relationship looks. He’s sure if anyone else saw, they’d think the two of them were friends and—honestly it’s sometimes hard to keep a part of himself from thinking that.

There was a way Komaeda would act—the animated way he’d talk, the enthusiasm he’d shamelessly show, his attentiveness, the way he’d smile and laugh—sometimes, Hinata couldn’t help but feel at ease. He’d still stiffen when Komaeda chattered about talent, his smile straining as he agreed with each miserable sentiment, but in moments outside of that... It was easy to pretend that they were a pair of friends, striking up friendly conversation, in front of the fountain, on that same stupid bench with a covetous view of the main building.

It’s strange, because if he had a real talent—if he was every bit as extraordinary and admirable as all the other elites—he wondered what relationship with Komaeda he’d have.

Because he knows they wouldn’t be equals even then. It’d be more like a reversal in dynamic. It’d be like...

* * *

_Komaeda looking up at him with sparkling reverence in his gaze, kneeling before him. Komaeda leaning on his every word and action, Komaeda whispering his name like a prayer—leaning into his touch..._

_The desperate way Komaeda clings to his hand as it presses against a pale, soft cheek, the way he’d murmur about how unworthy he was, how undeserving and disgusting for wanting this—Hinata wondering if he’d feel the slightest stirring of guilt for kissing him quiet instead of coming up with words to combat such sentimentalities._

_He’s seen Komaeda’s hopeless adoration in his own reflection, staring down at himself in his reverse course uniform, more times than he can count. There are even the same shadows under Komaeda’s gaze, the same dullness to those irises as Hinata cups his face and kisses him hard before pushing him down—_

_Komaeda under him is vastly different to Komaeda beside him on the bench. Less bright, less blinding, less—less, less,_ **less** _—_

It’s suffocating to the point that _**this**_ is where he wakes up gasping for air.

“You’re pathetic,” he grumbles to himself as he washes his face in the sink. He spits, scowling, “You’re _disgusting_.”

The way he glares at his reflection is as not unlike how he’d imagine and dread Komaeda doing the same if he ever found out. Thank god he never will.

He has no idea what he’d do if he did.

* * *

“Hinata-kun, good afternoon.”

That cold, calculating way of speaking wasn’t always so unsettling, was it? Maybe he’s just been spending too much time around Komaeda’s carefree calm. Maybe it’s just anxiety acting up. Who knows—doesn’t really matter either way.

“Hey, uh, I just...”

“Have you come to your decision?”

Direct and to the point without any fluff in-between cushioning the words. Hinata didn’t expect any different, not really.

“No,” Hinata says, exhaling. “I just need more time.”

“Of course,” the researcher states, and offers a polite smile. “Take your time, Hinata-kun, but do be aware of the time limit.”

“Y-Yeah.” Hinata nods. “I know, I know. Don’t worry, doctor.”

“Have you been enjoying your school days thus far?” The question sounds innocuous, at least, but something had Hinata’s hair standing on ends. “You’re doing well in your classes, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” Hinata says, nodding again. “I’m uh, managing. And I’m...thinking over the project. I swear I am.”

“I’m sure you are,” they say, smiling. It’s...unsettling. It’s _unsettling_. Especially as said smile widens serenely, eyes shutting, and Hinata barely has time to think about _him_ before, “You’ve been spending quite a bit of time with the 77th Class’s SHSL Lucky, haven’t you?”

Hinata stiffens, fights back a shiver, and nods a third time. “Yeah, uh, that’s... There’s nothing wrong with that, right? Because... Satou’s always having lunch with Koizumi-san and she’s also from the 77th class, right?”

“Of course not,” they answer simply and easily. It just makes Hinata feel more uneasy. “But I do find it interesting that you’re close to that particular person. Komaeda-kun is quite the handful, isn’t he?”

“A little... But he’s not that bad.” And yet, the _look_ the researcher gives him— _that cold, doubtful look_ —Hinata just did his best to overlook it. “He’s weird and worrying, but I don’t think he’s a bad person. Has Komaeda-kun caused trouble before or something?”

“That’s none of your concern.”

“...Right.” Hinata wasn’t even surprised by the quick, sharp response. “Never mind, then. I’ll talk to you later, doctor.”

“Best regards, Hinata-kun,” they call after him.

Hinata quickens his pace just by a bit.

* * *

“Komaeda, can I ask you something?”

Komaeda had just bitten into a sandwich, and was giving him a strange but inquisitive look in response. Hinata, even as a smile tugged at his lips at such an endearing sight, waited for him to chew and quickly swallow and questions, “What do you want to ask? You changed your mind on taking the other sandwich?”

“Ah, no, you need that more than I do,” Hinata says, waving his hand. He tries not to stare, to not take in just how _slight_ the other was for the umpteenth time. “I, uh... I wanted to ask about your talent.”

“It’s luck. What more is there to say?” Komaeda’s head cocks to the side. “Do you want to know how my luck works?”

“Heh, _works_? Isn’t luck kind of random?” Hinata laughs a bit, even though he didn’t necessarily mean it. “Then again, you don’t just have any kind of luck, you have _SHSL Luck_...”

“That doesn’t mean everything works out in my favor, Hinata-kun. At least not at first,” Komaeda turned back to his food, nibbling on it thoughtfully. “There’s a method and a pattern. But, as I’ve said, it’s not like I can perfectly predict how things will turn out for me even now... Still, as long as no one’s in danger of dying, I’m...” A pause, and then, “If things aren’t looking so good that they’re bound to turn into something terrible...”

“What are you talking about?” Hinata asks, perking up with confusion. “I mean, luck’s all about chance, right? Yeah, chance affects a lot of things, but...”

“Don’t worry about it,” Komaeda said simply and softly, but with this dullness that Hinata couldn’t help but pick up on. “It has nothing to do with you, after all. Hinata-kun’s just a side-character, not...anyone significant.”

Hinata flinched, feeling his chest clench tightly and painfully before he just forced out a heavy, heavy sigh, “Well... Anyway... Let me ask you something.”

Komaeda blinked up at him, wide-eyed and attentive. “What is it?”

“If you didn’t have luck...” Hinata trails off, biting his tongue before pushing himself forward, “Do you think you’d be here in the reserve course with me?”

Komaeda blinked at him.

“I-I mean,” Hinata stammered, swallowing. “Do you think you’d just be normal guy with a normal life or...?”

“Yes. I’d definitely just be a normal, not-at-all noteworthy person living a normal, insignificant life,” Komaeda chuckles, adding, “I would’ve thought that’d be obvious, Hinata-kun.”

Hinata hums, and he goes on, “What if you had an act—a _different_ talent? Anything other than SHSL Luck. What kind of person do you think you’d be?”

“That depends on the talent,” Komaeda answered easily.

“Would you be happier?” Hinata presses.

“Happier?” Komaeda echoes before going quiet, staring down blankly at nothing in particular. “I... Perhaps? But that’s...such a strange thing to think about, Hinata-kun, and pointless, too, because you can’t just _change who you are_ , talented or not, whatever that talent is...”

Hinata doesn’t say anything.

“But... I’m happy where I am, too, to the point where it’s a little scary,” Komaeda admits after a while, and it’s so softly that Hinata has to strain himself to hear. “Being around wonderful people, in a wonderful place like Hope’s Peak, getting to have all these wonderful experiences... Can I really wish for more? Wouldn’t that be just so— _insolent_?”

“I...” Hinata hesitates. “I envy you. It does sound nice being...in a position like that. If I had the talent or the luck, I think...”

“It doesn’t matter what you think,” Komaeda cuts him off, almost snappily. “As I said, such things are pointless to concern yourself with, Hinata-kun. Pointless and foolish.”

He used to feel the same.

“What if there was a way to change your talent—or to give yourself one?” Hinata was treading on a thin, dangerous line, but he couldn’t help but push more and more—“What would you do if that was an option? You said you’d be happier, so... If you could just...trade your luck for something else, would you?”

The way Komaeda looked at him then was indescribable, and went beyond the response someone would normally have to saying something so seemingly beyond outlandish.

“I don’t understand,” Komaeda says, pointblank. “I really don’t understand—Hinata-kun, are you quite alright?”

“I just... Just humor me here?” Hinata was practically pleading. “Answer the question—what would you do? Would you... Would you try something like that out?”

“Something like _that_?” Komaeda repeats with a wheezy, puffed out laugh. “Hinata-kun, do you want to know what something like that _sounds_ like?”

“I...” He guessed, wincing, “Too good to be true?”

“It sounds like the kind of deranged plot point I’d see in a _sci-fi novel_ ,” Komaeda explains, and then, rather curiously, adds, “Specifically a plot point involving _human experimentation_.”

Hinata felt the world stop dead cold. He could barely even hear his own heartbeat.

“It... It’s just a question...” He could only barely hear his own distant, vapid response. “Don’t...look too deeply into it. Just...answer, please?”

“I don’t know what I’d do.” Somehow Komaeda’s answer was just that: a bland, boring, expectable answer that had his mind rushing back, and had Hinata nearly burst out laughing from those stupid, stupid nerves. Somehow, he managed to get a hold of himself before that happened, and Komaeda asks, almost suspiciously, “What would _you_ do, Hinata-kun?”

_Heh, it’s like he’s testing me. But it’s not like he knows. There’s no way he knows._

“I don’t know either.” Hinata shrugs, all smiles and laughs that he doesn’t even feel the strain to anymore. “I uh, just don’t know. It just sounds too good to be true. And...”

“It sounds like something that’d have quite the cost,” Komaeda muses, to which Hinata immediately nods along.

“Yeah. Definitely.”

And then, a pause.

“You should...probably finish that sandwich before the bugs get to it.”

“Oh, right.” Komaeda did return to eating, even as he did still take pretty miniscule bites. Without missing a beat, he pulled out the other, uneaten sandwich and offered it, “One last chance, Hinata-kun. Are you sure you don’t want it?”

“Ah, no,” Hinata said quickly, even as he trailed off as Komaeda gave him that curious stare again, with wide doe eyes. Hinata found his gaze narrowing towards the bit of mayonnaise on the corner of the other’s mouth before drifting down. The collar of his shirt had been just a little parted, with the tie loosened only a little, but Hinata could still take in the thinness of that pale neck, the sharpness of that sliver of a revealed collarbone.

He swallows, and somehow manages to repeat, lightly and almost good-naturedly, “You definitely need it more than I do.”

Komaeda puts the sandwich back in place, words muffled through a mouthful as he responded, “Your loss, Hinata-kun.”

Hinata laughs, “I think I can live with that.”

* * *

The days seem to pass by quicker and quicker and it’s as though he’s stuck in place, watching everything else pass by without sparing him a second glance.

It’s...difficult, putting it lightly.

And yet, he can still find himself at the meeting place, where Komaeda seems to be caught up in some book. Komaeda, who, upon noticing his arrival, smiles up at him, chipper as ever, “Hinata-kun.”

“Komaeda,” he returns, quietly and slowly. “Are you getting along with your class?”

“Everyone’s getting along fairly well! It’s quite wonderful, _hopeful_ , and I’m so lucky to bear witness!” Hinata can’t help but reflect that wide, bright smile on Komaeda’s face—even if it wasn’t by much, even if he couldn’t imagine looking that happy. “It wouldn’t surprise me if people around me started dying!”

“Because it just seems too good to be true?” Hinata asks lowly. “Either way, you shouldn’t jinx it, Komaeda.”

“It’s not jinxing—it’s...” Komaeda trails off. “It’s just how things usually go for me... If everything is looking well, something goes wrong. If everything seems like it’s going _all_ wrong, something ends up _right_. Something like that—but it just sounds like I’m describing books I’ve read.”

“I think you’ll be fine, either way,” Hinata says. “But I also think that way of thinking is...concerning.”

“It has nothing to do with you, Hinata-kun, so you shouldn’t be concerned.”

“...Alright.”

“It’s actually not,” Komaeda says suddenly. He’s fiddling with one of the book’s pages. “Because you might just die soon, Hinata-kun.”

“I don’t want to think about that,” Hinata replied quickly, fighting off a grimace. “I have enough things to feel anxious over that I don’t have time for fear of the inevitability of death washing over me. I’d rather just worry over schoolwork, thanks.”

“If you say so—but it is a pressing concern of mine, nonetheless,” Komaeda mumbled. “Even though Hinata-kun is just a normal, average, completely unremarkable reserve course student... It’s a concern to care for someone like that too, isn’t it?”

There was definitely more to it, he could tell, but with how the words kind of hurt to think over, Hinata decided against pressing the apparent issue. “Shouldn’t you have bigger things to worry about anyway?”

“You’re right,” Komaeda sighs. “And that just makes this concern all the more frustrating. Why am I like this, Hinata-kun?”

_I wouldn’t know the answer to that. But really._

“I... Don’t worry about that.”

_You can’t just ask me something like that. Not with how things are between us. It’s not like we’re friends or anything like that, right?_

“Hey... Komaeda...”

_What are we, anyway?_

“The researchers here are still studying luck as a talent, right?” Hinata asks.

“Yes, but as it turns out, I’m under contract to not speak in-depth about that, Hinata-kun,” Komaeda answers simply, back to cheerful smiles as though they’ve always been there. “My apologies.”

“I don’t want details,” Hinata clarifies, swallowing as he did. “What I mean is—they pick a SHSL Lucky every year, right? They’ll pick one next year, too.”

“Most likely! Headmaster Kirigiri is pushing for them to continue the lottery, you know,” Komaeda says matter-of-factly before quirking a brow, “What of it, Hinata-kun?”

“I’m just thinking... It’s not likely every SHSL Lucky is like the one before.” Hinata watches as Komaeda perks up, eyes slowly widening as Hinata goes on, “Someone’s SHSL Luck might be superior or inferior to someone else’s SHSL Luck, right?”

“Right,” Komaeda responds. “Yes, that’s right.”

Hinata’s smile wanes, but he presses, “Komaeda... Have you, uh, ever met anyone whose luck triumphed over your own, so to speak?”

“No.”

The answer was short and immediate.

Hinata hesitates, but he presses on.

“If you met someone who had stronger luck than yours, whose luck always seemed to overturn yours, no matter what you did... What would you do? How would you feel?”

_Useless, right? Pathetic, right? Worthless, **lesser** , why are you even _ **trying** _—_

“I’d fall in love with that person on the spot, I think.”

Hinata’s thoughts stopped dead in place. Komaeda tapped his chin, his contemplative gaze towards the gently shifting sky above.

“Someone whose luck is stronger than mine—someone who could overcome my luck regardless of it threw at them—I think I’d fall in love with them almost instantly. Because,” Quieting, his voice turned soft and wistful, longing in a way that Hinata felt like the world was bunching up, “Someone like that—they’d have to be something _else_. Would they be full of hope? Full of despair? I really have to wonder...”

 _Luck isn’t really a talent they can generate, is it? If it is..._ Hinata rubbed at his temple, grimacing, but his mind kept racing. _Is Komaeda’s luck really that formidable? I don’t even fully understand but, if—he’s saying things like this—that he’ll fall in love just like_ that _—_

“Do you mean that?” he asks.

“I think I do,” Komaeda replies, with his usual laugh returning. But it didn’t settle Hinata’s nerves at all—if anything else he just feels—

 _Disgusting. Of all things,_ that’s _what tempts me. But it’s not like I’ll ever be that on my own... It’s not like I can remain here on my own either, be it at HPA or by this person’s side. Isn’t that pathetic? Could you be anymore_ hopeless _? What are you supposed to do?_

**_What am I supposed to_ do _?_**

He still didn’t have an answer, and time was running out.

“Hinata-kun,” Komaeda starts. “Why did you ask something like that?”

“No reason.”

Hinata manages a smile in spite of Komaeda blinking up at him, ever innocently, ever curiously.

“It’s really nothing, Komaeda. It was just a question.”

* * *

If there was a perfect word to describe Komaeda, Hinata isn’t sure he’d know it. Spacey, perhaps. Strange, probably. Contradictory would work. Indescribable would do a good job of simultaneously explaining nothing and everything there was about that guy.

They’re very different from one another in some ways, very similar in others. He’s not sure which it is that attracts, which it is that repulses. It could be either or—it could be both—it could be something else entirely. He wouldn’t know.

If their circumstances had been reversed, would everything else remain the same? If their circumstances were different, if they were _better_ , then what would remain of whatever relationship they have? He wouldn’t know that, either.

He wouldn’t dare to ponder it. These feelings are dangerous enough, stewing in the back of his mind every time he thought of that guy. He could almost scream.

_But, the thing about Komaeda was..._

Komaeda admired Hope’s Peak like he did. That much was obvious—but Komaeda was the one _lucky_ enough to attend when it had always been Hinata’s dream to be there.

To stand proud in Hope’s Peak, to being among the talented and one of the talented and someone that normal people would just look to for hope and expectation. He had always, _always_ dreamed of being that.

But he has and always will be one of those normal people looking towards the talented elites, unless he agreed to the project. Said project could be the end of him. It’s as terrifying as it is tempting.

Hinata doesn’t resent Komaeda for being lucky. He envies him, of course, but he doesn’t resent him.

Komaeda’s luck isn’t normal—it goes _above_ expectations—so Komaeda deserves the title of SHSL Lucky, right? He wouldn’t resent Komaeda for that. He’s been resentful enough in middle school and in his old high school. He’s just...tired.

That’s all there is to it.

* * *

Komaeda’s worry about people dying was not an unfounded fear. Hinata didn’t know what to think about that, so he didn’t think about it at all. It’d just make the whole situation more messed up and, well, he just didn’t think that was his place. Satou and Kuzuryuu were his classmates—but they weren’t his friends or anything like that.

It wasn’t his place. That security guard pretty much rubbed that into his face, quite literally, quite painfully until that teacher stopped him.

It wasn’t his place.

* * *

“Hinata-kun,” Komaeda greets him quickly, with a bright smile and the seemingly usual cheer, but even Hinata can tell it’s not the same. “I didn’t think you’d show up today.”

Hinata didn’t think he would, either. But he had to ask.

“Did you hear about what happened?”

“Both Kuzuryuu-kun and Koizumi-san are my classmates, Hinata-kun,” Komaeda answers, and his smile does fade into something more genuine. “Can I assume something similar for you? It’d be quite the unfortunate coincidence, but...”

Hinata didn’t even miss a beat. “Your assumption’s correct.”

Komaeda wilts a bit more. “I... It’s a difficult situation, but I think my classmates will pull through, at least, with time.”

“They’re going to just sweep the whole thing under the rug for the rest of us though,” Hinata mutters. “Reserve students are replaceable, after all. They’re just there to support the main course. It doesn’t really matter if we die or not. It’s inconvenient for the school, at most.”

Komaeda didn’t say anything in response at first. He just seemed to be thinking things over. Hinata, feeling something unpleasant welling up in his throat, could _barely_ keep himself from shouting,

“Ko _mae_ da!”

“Ah, no, it’s nothing,” Komaeda was mumbling half to him, half to himself, it seemed. “It was a tragedy, yes, but it doesn’t involve Hinata-kun, so you shouldn’t worry too much about it.”

_Doesn’t involve me._

“I see.”

_This doesn’t involve me._

“You know, they _were_ my classmates. Kuzuryuu-san and I talked quite a bit before she was killed. I overheard the kind of disagreements she and Satou-san had.”

“Did I offend you?” Komaeda asks and Hinata would have blown up at him if not for that look on his face—the genuine worry and something that might have been _alarm_. “I didn’t mean to, Hinata-kun. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“I’m _not_ —it’s...just hard to talk about. But this was more than just some random tragedy.” Hinata wondered when that pleading tone reached his voice as he asked, “You know that, right?”

Komaeda looked at him like he did, except his expression shifted to unreadable.

“So what if I do?”

The tone’s unexpectedly sharp and Komaeda just goes on.

“It’s not like I _knew_ the people involved personally,” he says, and Hinata actually flinches, “I’m not in Koizumi-san’s circle of friends—I don’t even know what Satou-san _looked_ like. And Kuzuryuu-kun—we’re _definitely_ not close enough for me to know _anything_ about his sister aside from the fact that she existed. I’m not involved in _any_ of this, Hinata-kun, whether there’s more to the whole ordeal or not.” With a sigh, it’s like he’s explaining something so painfully _simple_ , “I’m just a bystander and _so are you_.”

And somehow, Hinata hears himself reply, “And that’s all people like us are going to amount to, right?”

“That’s just how things are,” Komaeda states easily, in a serious tone of voice. “It’s better to just accept such things quickly, Hinata-kun.”

_Easier said than done._

Nor necessarily true.

“There’s a stain on your collar,” Komaeda says suddenly, _worriedly_. “That’s not blood, is it?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Hinata says just as quickly as the other had before, and he keeps himself from fidgeting with said collar. “It doesn’t involve you.”

Komaeda, to his credit, just nods, albeit meekly.

_You’re unfair, you know that?_

“I...actually have somewhere to be.” Rubbing at the nape of his neck, he forced out a laugh and an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, Komaeda, I should’ve said that sooner.”

“Oh, that’s alright,” Komaeda says and it sounds like he means it. It even sounds like, for once, he’s being reassuring. “I understand, Hinata-kun. Be careful.”

_You’re **really** unfair, you know that?_

Hinata nods in returns and passes by him quickly and swiftly. Except, Komaeda calls after him,

“See you tomorrow, Hinata-kun.”

And Hinata just—stopped, clinching his fists.

“Komaeda...” He starts, hesitates, and shakes his head before smiling at the other over his shoulder. “You care a lot about Hope’s Peak, don’t you?”

“Of course,” Komaeda says, blinking in confusion. “I’ve made that obvious, right?”

“Yeah, and you care a lot about your class too, right?” Hinata turns just a little more towards him. “Even though you’re not exactly friends with any of them, even though they don’t see you as their friend either, you still wish the best for them, right?”

“Of course!” Komaeda chirps, firmer in tone. “Shouldn’t that be obvious too? Haven’t I said so before?”

“You have,” Hinata agrees. “And I don’t doubt that’s how you are. I envy you, Komaeda, for being able to feel the way you do so strongly.”

Just like that, a blush flickered across those pale cheeks. It could have been from surprise, it could have just been embarrassment—Hinata didn’t let himself look too deeply into it.

“And, for what it’s worth,” Hinata took a deep breath and, “There’s more to you than just your SHSL Luck. You’ve got your other good points, too. I’m sure other people see that, and appreciate it.”

If Komaeda wasn’t so pale, he wouldn’t have been able to take notice of that blush darkening, but he did note without any trouble the way Komaeda was crossing his arms tightly.

“You should be ashamed,” Komaeda said quietly, and Hinata would have flinched had he not gone on, “Saying cheesy things like that—aren’t you just embarrassing yourself, Hinata-kun?”

Despite everything, Hinata let out a soft, sincere laugh. “You’re probably right. But I meant what I said.”

“Then that makes it worse,” Komaeda mumbles with childish irritation.

“Komaeda,” Hinata says, and his smile wanes, “I’ll...see you, alright? It might not be tomorrow but...surely someday.”

He turns back around, and he starts walking.

“Hinata-kun!”

Hinata halts, and he looks back, eyes wide.

“Ah, no,” Komaeda seemed almost painfully embarrassed and self-conscious, and he quickly ducked his head, expression back to unreadable. “It’s nothing. Never mind. I’ll see you.”

Hinata blinked twice, and couldn’t help but smile, however sad said smile was.

“I’ll see you, Komaeda,” he repeated.

And he left without another word between either of them.

* * *

Hinata thought a lot of things over for what felt like a long, long time.

But in truth, he agreed to the project relatively soon after that day.

* * *

He did wonder about many more things after agreeing, during all the testing and resting as scientists did their work.

Like what would happen once he saw Komaeda after all this—as someone else, someone important, someone significant, someone _Komaeda would fall in love with_ —

A _pillar_ , the scientists would say,  _of **hope**_. The encapsulation of HPA’s accomplishments and goals.

Not a bystander or a side-character, but a protagonist, he supposed.

What would he do? What would he accomplish?

Shutting his eyes, Hinata dreamed of possibilities until bit by bit, everything fell apart.

* * *

“Good luck or bad luck?”

Komaeda twirls the clover between his fingers, humming and thoughtful.

“Good luck, bad luck, which is it?” he wonders again, before changing his mind with, “Well, it might not be either. It might not mean anything. He was just a reserve course student after all.”

Leaning his back against the bench and staring blankly at the orange sky above, Komaeda considered it.

“He was just a reserve course student. He didn’t matter. So I shouldn’t expect anything, neither good luck nor bad luck.”

The clouds drifted uncaringly overhead, both pink and orange died down as the sun dipped further and further under the horizon, and since it was getting dark, he really should head back to his dorm.

But he decided to sit and wait in the waning twilight and approaching dusk, for just a little longer, for no particular reason.

And if Hinata’s name slipped thoughtlessly past his lips in that time, that didn’t mean anything either.


End file.
